Today I went back on the ice again after nearly a year of zero skating. Ice rinks have been closed in Austria since the beginning of the pandemic and no coaching is offered (with exceptions for professionals), but after two weeks of -15°C the big lakes in my vicinity have all frozen over and are finally open for outdoor skating.
My blades felt like they had no edges (no sharpening services offered by the skating club due to Covid), the ice was bumpy like a mogul slope - and I caught every bump with my toe pick, and it was so cold that tiny icicles formed in my hair. My boyfriend was unfazed by it all. He did his stroking exercises forwards and backwards in his hockey skates, enjoyed the offroad skating, as he called it, while I barely managed to do swizzles. He told me to bend my knees and bend at the hip, but I was rigid as a board. After my first fall of the season (I spotted the hole in the ice, but it was too late and I landed on my butt) I became a bit more relaxed. But when I tried to do stroking to pick up speed, I just kept slipping on my edges. First I told myself that it was due to the lack of sharpening, but now I realize that a big part is also that I neglected to do proper strength exercises for my legs during the downtime. I did a lot of stretching because I wanted to use the forced off-ice break to improve spin positions, but currently I am unable to even get into a two-foot spin - so much for that strategy.
Anyway, it still felt glorious to go skating again and I hope it stays cold and the outdoor rinks will be open until the end of February at least. What I took from today is that I will focus more on strength and stability in my off-ice workouts from now on, and that I desperately need to find someone to sharpen my blades. Also, I really need some individual classes with an instructor again, since today was quite a blow to my confidence in myself as a skater, but realistically, this probably will not be possible until September due to Covid restrictions.
Tonight I am sore all over. Long gone are the days when I had a concussion as a kid, and three weeks later I was playing sports again. Nowadays, it feels like I sit in a wrong position for five minutes at work, and I need physiotherapy for the next two months. Still skating is the best sport ever. It may break your bones, but it never breaks your heart!
So, fellow recreational/adult skaters, how did you fare your first time back on the ice after the lockdown (or after any long break from skating)? Did you have similar experiences or did it feel like you've never left the ice at all (and if yes, what is your secret)?
My blades felt like they had no edges (no sharpening services offered by the skating club due to Covid), the ice was bumpy like a mogul slope - and I caught every bump with my toe pick, and it was so cold that tiny icicles formed in my hair. My boyfriend was unfazed by it all. He did his stroking exercises forwards and backwards in his hockey skates, enjoyed the offroad skating, as he called it, while I barely managed to do swizzles. He told me to bend my knees and bend at the hip, but I was rigid as a board. After my first fall of the season (I spotted the hole in the ice, but it was too late and I landed on my butt) I became a bit more relaxed. But when I tried to do stroking to pick up speed, I just kept slipping on my edges. First I told myself that it was due to the lack of sharpening, but now I realize that a big part is also that I neglected to do proper strength exercises for my legs during the downtime. I did a lot of stretching because I wanted to use the forced off-ice break to improve spin positions, but currently I am unable to even get into a two-foot spin - so much for that strategy.
Anyway, it still felt glorious to go skating again and I hope it stays cold and the outdoor rinks will be open until the end of February at least. What I took from today is that I will focus more on strength and stability in my off-ice workouts from now on, and that I desperately need to find someone to sharpen my blades. Also, I really need some individual classes with an instructor again, since today was quite a blow to my confidence in myself as a skater, but realistically, this probably will not be possible until September due to Covid restrictions.
Tonight I am sore all over. Long gone are the days when I had a concussion as a kid, and three weeks later I was playing sports again. Nowadays, it feels like I sit in a wrong position for five minutes at work, and I need physiotherapy for the next two months. Still skating is the best sport ever. It may break your bones, but it never breaks your heart!
So, fellow recreational/adult skaters, how did you fare your first time back on the ice after the lockdown (or after any long break from skating)? Did you have similar experiences or did it feel like you've never left the ice at all (and if yes, what is your secret)?